[Successful Journey] Scaling Amazon Affiliate from $1000/m to $10k
- Thread starter Bloooop
- Start date
pleb1
Regular Member
- Dec 20, 2009
- 331
- 380
As you might have seen, I've been following this journey almost since it started.
Now that I have plans to move full-time with my affiliate/SEO projects myself, I have to ask: are you ever worried about finances and stuff?
I have quite good savings, but there's something in my brain that says: "what IF all the affiliate programs shut down tomorrow - and Google have another core update destroying your sites completely.."?
Now that I have plans to move full-time with my affiliate/SEO projects myself, I have to ask: are you ever worried about finances and stuff?
I have quite good savings, but there's something in my brain that says: "what IF all the affiliate programs shut down tomorrow - and Google have another core update destroying your sites completely.."?
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
I don't know what happened today but I literally did nothing.
I've just been idling and wondering what'll happen tomorrow if the world will end haha. Waiting to see but I guess I'll get back to work again in the morning.
Earnings for Yesterday:
It was a very good day with lots of high ticket items sold. My CR is a little affected but I think it's due to the current state of affairs in the US.
I'll create a company and go public after selling my current main site. Then figure it out. But for now the giphy...
I know you've been following
I also had your concerns too. The thing I learned is that "What IFs" will always exist.
Previously I had a SURE job in the most important sector of my country. Granted I hated the 9-5 grind because of my mentality but I had no insecurities about my position in the job.
So I didn't even consider a what if I lost it scenario then came Covid and that business had to shut down. I still have the Job but it's just not paying me now and won't for quite a few more months.
I'm sharing that to say no one thing is Sure and anything can happen at any time.
The best way is to hedge yourself against all odds by doing these few things I luckily did last year:
1) Get out of debt.
2) Have an emergency fund that covers all your living expenses(think of your average expenses in the months you spend the most money) for at least 6 months but preferably a year.
3) Diversify your net worth by owning multiple online businesses that aren't monetized with one source, investing in a mutual fund, stocks, real estate and keep saving at least 10-20% of your monthly income.
If you do all three things properly, you'll have at least 2 years to figure things out if all else fails. At least that's how I think about it. And as a last resort take up any menial job to survive.
One thing you have to remember is that what we are doing is honing a skill. It's not something that can just be taken away because Amazon, Google, or any other place that pays us disappears tomorrow. Or SEO ceases to exist.
The principles of making money will always exist and they are universal:
If affiliate programs disappear then you run ads or make an ebook or other digital product to sell etc.
So if done right and considering that you have no debt, an emergency fund that can last you 6 months if you live lavishly and stretched for longer if you cut back on everything, I'd say there's nothing to worry about.
If I lost all my sites tomorrow, I'd be devastated mentally for a few weeks but I'd quickly get back to it shortly after. Even if I saw that SEO failed, I'd start pushing ads, making videos, dropshipping, or whatever else to adapt.
I've grown over the years and have done most methods from Youtube game hacks to CPA offers, dropshipping, ClickBank with FB ads, and now to affiliate marketing with SEO and the only thing that has changed is where the traffic comes from apart from that everything remains the same.
Which is to say that you'll be fine if you can survive a few months and don't give up just because one thing stopped working.
Google won't wipe out all sites ever at least not within the next 5-10 years. And Affiliate marketing will always exist as long as you have businesses.
Furthermore, people will always have problems that need solving. And once there's that, you will be able to make money online considering that the internet users will only keep growing as the population of the world increases.
I don't know what happened today but I literally did nothing.
I've just been idling and wondering what'll happen tomorrow if the world will end haha. Waiting to see but I guess I'll get back to work again in the morning.
Earnings for Yesterday:
It was a very good day with lots of high ticket items sold. My CR is a little affected but I think it's due to the current state of affairs in the US.
I'll create a company and go public after selling my current main site. Then figure it out. But for now the giphy...
I know you've been following
I also had your concerns too. The thing I learned is that "What IFs" will always exist.
Previously I had a SURE job in the most important sector of my country. Granted I hated the 9-5 grind because of my mentality but I had no insecurities about my position in the job.
So I didn't even consider a what if I lost it scenario then came Covid and that business had to shut down. I still have the Job but it's just not paying me now and won't for quite a few more months.
I'm sharing that to say no one thing is Sure and anything can happen at any time.
The best way is to hedge yourself against all odds by doing these few things I luckily did last year:
1) Get out of debt.
2) Have an emergency fund that covers all your living expenses(think of your average expenses in the months you spend the most money) for at least 6 months but preferably a year.
3) Diversify your net worth by owning multiple online businesses that aren't monetized with one source, investing in a mutual fund, stocks, real estate and keep saving at least 10-20% of your monthly income.
If you do all three things properly, you'll have at least 2 years to figure things out if all else fails. At least that's how I think about it. And as a last resort take up any menial job to survive.
One thing you have to remember is that what we are doing is honing a skill. It's not something that can just be taken away because Amazon, Google, or any other place that pays us disappears tomorrow. Or SEO ceases to exist.
The principles of making money will always exist and they are universal:
- Find a problem that people have.
- Offer them a solution.
- Present it to them in creative ways. (generate traffic)
If affiliate programs disappear then you run ads or make an ebook or other digital product to sell etc.
So if done right and considering that you have no debt, an emergency fund that can last you 6 months if you live lavishly and stretched for longer if you cut back on everything, I'd say there's nothing to worry about.
If I lost all my sites tomorrow, I'd be devastated mentally for a few weeks but I'd quickly get back to it shortly after. Even if I saw that SEO failed, I'd start pushing ads, making videos, dropshipping, or whatever else to adapt.
I've grown over the years and have done most methods from Youtube game hacks to CPA offers, dropshipping, ClickBank with FB ads, and now to affiliate marketing with SEO and the only thing that has changed is where the traffic comes from apart from that everything remains the same.
Which is to say that you'll be fine if you can survive a few months and don't give up just because one thing stopped working.
Google won't wipe out all sites ever at least not within the next 5-10 years. And Affiliate marketing will always exist as long as you have businesses.
Furthermore, people will always have problems that need solving. And once there's that, you will be able to make money online considering that the internet users will only keep growing as the population of the world increases.
pleb1
Regular Member
- Dec 20, 2009
- 331
- 380
Brilliant! I'm not gonna make this thread about me or my situation, but you're making an awful lot of good points.
I've been able to buy out my business partner for my Norwegian projects. The problem is that one site is making 80% of the revenue. And on that site, one specific affiliate partner is making 90 % of the revenue. So your point about diversification is more crucial now than ever - and I just need to work hard to make that happen.
But thanks a lot! I'll call my boss on Friday or Monday.
I've been able to buy out my business partner for my Norwegian projects. The problem is that one site is making 80% of the revenue. And on that site, one specific affiliate partner is making 90 % of the revenue. So your point about diversification is more crucial now than ever - and I just need to work hard to make that happen.
But thanks a lot! I'll call my boss on Friday or Monday.
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
Started the day at 9 AM by checking into the search console and noticed that my page speed timings weren't all that impressive.
I had the majority of pages with a very long CLS time from
To This:
Or This:
I fixed the cumulative layout shift issues by letting WProcket specify image dimensions first and then delayed JScript executions. But now when I go check page speed insights I get good scores on desktop
However, for mobile, my metrics suck because thrive is calling unused CSS.
It's a problem for another day. I'll do some more research on how to solve it later on and hopefully, it doesn't impact my site.
Earnings for Yesterday:
CR improved but item value declined with about $30 lost in returns.
Things Done Today:
But it kind of isn't at the same time. I'm almost finished with all the buyer guides for this site. By the end of the month, I'll have 80-90 articles on the site. Then after that, it's mostly info articles that'll be left to write on.
I figure I can finish writing those info articles by the end of February then I'll 301 an expired domain to this site then let it sit for 3-6 months. Hopefully, it'll grow...
Started the day at 9 AM by checking into the search console and noticed that my page speed timings weren't all that impressive.
I had the majority of pages with a very long CLS time from
To This:
Or This:
I fixed the cumulative layout shift issues by letting WProcket specify image dimensions first and then delayed JScript executions. But now when I go check page speed insights I get good scores on desktop
However, for mobile, my metrics suck because thrive is calling unused CSS.
It's a problem for another day. I'll do some more research on how to solve it later on and hopefully, it doesn't impact my site.
Earnings for Yesterday:
CR improved but item value declined with about $30 lost in returns.
Things Done Today:
- Wrote 1 article at 2,654 words.
- Did some keyword research and stumbled on a path to expand the second site.
But it kind of isn't at the same time. I'm almost finished with all the buyer guides for this site. By the end of the month, I'll have 80-90 articles on the site. Then after that, it's mostly info articles that'll be left to write on.
I figure I can finish writing those info articles by the end of February then I'll 301 an expired domain to this site then let it sit for 3-6 months. Hopefully, it'll grow...
Thomas Shelby
Power Member
- Jan 3, 2013
- 635
- 366
@Bloooop checkout Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster – WordPress plugin | WordPress.org
It helps you remove unused CSS, etc.
It helps you remove unused CSS, etc.
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
WTF, I spent all day working but only clocked 5 Hrs and 54 mins of productivity.
Honestly, that's good enough for me but I was expecting that it'd be more considering the number of things I used to do each day.
Earnings for Yesterday:
Thought the world would've ended yesterday but things continue and now I hope Americans will start giving me more of their money.
WTF, I spent all day working but only clocked 5 Hrs and 54 mins of productivity.
Honestly, that's good enough for me but I was expecting that it'd be more considering the number of things I used to do each day.
Earnings for Yesterday:
Thought the world would've ended yesterday but things continue and now I hope Americans will start giving me more of their money.
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Turns out the thing that is causing my issues can't be removed. But I still found the tool useful in removing other bloat from the site. This was a good share, thanks!
Yuna Braska
Regular Member
- Dec 15, 2012
- 227
- 48
Hello! Thanks for the news. How many visitors you have now per day?
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
I spent the majority of the day optimizing articles on the main site.
I noticed a few pages that are 3 months old that didn't seem to budge in SERPs at #20-30 and it turns out that the page wasn't targeting the main keywords at all.
Moreover, I had to change out a few products from ones with a high return rate as that's killing my earnings.
I'm losing maybe $10-$30 on returns and I lost $70 in returns yesterday from a high ticket item. This was the first time I've seen a high ticket item being returned TBH.
Either way, for those of you doing Amz, try to look at what items don't seem to stick and switch them out with other similar or better ones.
Earnings for Yesterday:
1,300+
I spent the majority of the day optimizing articles on the main site.
I noticed a few pages that are 3 months old that didn't seem to budge in SERPs at #20-30 and it turns out that the page wasn't targeting the main keywords at all.
Moreover, I had to change out a few products from ones with a high return rate as that's killing my earnings.
I'm losing maybe $10-$30 on returns and I lost $70 in returns yesterday from a high ticket item. This was the first time I've seen a high ticket item being returned TBH.
Either way, for those of you doing Amz, try to look at what items don't seem to stick and switch them out with other similar or better ones.
Earnings for Yesterday:
1,300+
Yuna Braska
Regular Member
- Dec 15, 2012
- 227
- 48
Okay thanks Really nice job
Really nice job
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
I've been out all weekend so I couldn't make updates. But I had a great weekend with the site's performance.
Earnings for Days Missed:
Considering that I'm outside the peak period for my niche, I'm excited to see what'll happen during those months. I'll just need to maintain the rankings and keep my fingers crossed that I can survive every google update while diversifying.
On another note, I read an interesting story that is a huge wake-up call for me and should be for you if you procrastinate.
I don't know what you'll get from it after you read it but I realized that anything that distracts you from your goals is meant to stop you from reaching your true potential.
You might've been on a path to becoming a billionaire but because of simple things like porn, the internet, social media, drugs, friends you lose the chance to achieve greatness.
If you really want to achieve greatness, you'll know what to do after reading the story.
I've been out all weekend so I couldn't make updates. But I had a great weekend with the site's performance.
Earnings for Days Missed:
Considering that I'm outside the peak period for my niche, I'm excited to see what'll happen during those months. I'll just need to maintain the rankings and keep my fingers crossed that I can survive every google update while diversifying.
On another note, I read an interesting story that is a huge wake-up call for me and should be for you if you procrastinate.
I don't know what you'll get from it after you read it but I realized that anything that distracts you from your goals is meant to stop you from reaching your true potential.
You might've been on a path to becoming a billionaire but because of simple things like porn, the internet, social media, drugs, friends you lose the chance to achieve greatness.
If you really want to achieve greatness, you'll know what to do after reading the story.
pleb1
Regular Member
- Dec 20, 2009
- 331
- 380
Brilliant share.
It gives me flashback to the moments where I would go into these affiliate program dashboards like 10-15 times per day to see if I got any more sales.
It was when I first started to understand that I had to work hard on my websites in order to see the progress that I stopped.
Dopamine is extremely dangerous for digital marketers. We're working on a computer that gives access to SO much entertainment - and we're "forced" to do the most boring stuff you can do on a computer: work.
It gives me flashback to the moments where I would go into these affiliate program dashboards like 10-15 times per day to see if I got any more sales.
It was when I first started to understand that I had to work hard on my websites in order to see the progress that I stopped.
Dopamine is extremely dangerous for digital marketers. We're working on a computer that gives access to SO much entertainment - and we're "forced" to do the most boring stuff you can do on a computer: work.
yesofcourse
Power Member
- Feb 15, 2015
- 584
- 304
That hits hard
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
So I spent the last 14 hours optimizing 90 articles on the site main site. Spent 7+ hours yesterday and 6+ hours today.
I decided to focus on one task so that I can reduce the number of things I needed to do in a day since it seemed like I couldn't get them done no matter how early I start working.
With that in mind, I picked the task that should theoretically bring the fastest improvements which are running all the articles through surfer. So I've only got 40 more articles or so to go and this task is done.
After that, I'll only need to upload existing content for the next two sites then focus solely on writing content throughout the future months.
Earnings for Yesterday:
I know exactly how boring this gets and it's worse especially when you're doing everything by yourself with few people to relate to.
But once you stick through it the rewards are worth it. I used to avoid checking my dashboards for my earnings for today when I had little traffic. But now that it's flowing I check it after every 2-3 hours cause I know I've sold a few high ticket items.
Still, it took very long hours doing the same thing without any instant gratification. One of the things that is helping me now is putting my goal on my screen and having it always within view. That way every time I feel like slacking I look at it and continue working through the hours.
So I spent the last 14 hours optimizing 90 articles on the site main site. Spent 7+ hours yesterday and 6+ hours today.
I decided to focus on one task so that I can reduce the number of things I needed to do in a day since it seemed like I couldn't get them done no matter how early I start working.
With that in mind, I picked the task that should theoretically bring the fastest improvements which are running all the articles through surfer. So I've only got 40 more articles or so to go and this task is done.
After that, I'll only need to upload existing content for the next two sites then focus solely on writing content throughout the future months.
Earnings for Yesterday:
I know exactly how boring this gets and it's worse especially when you're doing everything by yourself with few people to relate to.
But once you stick through it the rewards are worth it. I used to avoid checking my dashboards for my earnings for today when I had little traffic. But now that it's flowing I check it after every 2-3 hours cause I know I've sold a few high ticket items.
Still, it took very long hours doing the same thing without any instant gratification. One of the things that is helping me now is putting my goal on my screen and having it always within view. That way every time I feel like slacking I look at it and continue working through the hours.
pleb1
Regular Member
- Dec 20, 2009
- 331
- 380
Great idea!
I actually have a screenshot from Chiang Mai as my background for the last 6 months - and it helped me motivate me every time I turned on the computer. "If you earn enough, you'll soon be free from your 9-5 job!"
Bloooop
Regular Member
- Apr 29, 2014
- 486
- 2,326
Update
I'm finally done optimizing all the 170+ articles on my main site. Took a very long time but I think it'll pay off in the long run as I was already in the top 10 for most keywords and top 20 for upcoming terms.
With the optimizing, I think I could see a jump in traffic by 30% in the next few weeks.
All in all, this task took 20 hours to complete. I also uploaded AMZ links and images to 19 articles that were aging for 2 months.
I have 7 more articles to upload and then I'm done with this site for now and have 2 fewer items to work on daily.
Earnings for Yesterday:
The total sales value is 10k so I should be getting a few 200+ days before the end of the month IF they start shipping.
I'm finally done optimizing all the 170+ articles on my main site. Took a very long time but I think it'll pay off in the long run as I was already in the top 10 for most keywords and top 20 for upcoming terms.
With the optimizing, I think I could see a jump in traffic by 30% in the next few weeks.
All in all, this task took 20 hours to complete. I also uploaded AMZ links and images to 19 articles that were aging for 2 months.
I have 7 more articles to upload and then I'm done with this site for now and have 2 fewer items to work on daily.
Earnings for Yesterday:
The total sales value is 10k so I should be getting a few 200+ days before the end of the month IF they start shipping.
